It is the heartbeat of your home and everyone passes through it.
You fix coffee and breakfast there. Snacks, lunch, and dinner require your presence in this room. You may not even be doing anything food related, but you probably find yourself in this room more often than any other room of the ... [ Read More ]

Window coverings were never a priority.
Inexpensive mini-blinds, solid-color blackout curtains to keep the sun from waking you in the morning, or a sheet tacked above the window. Really, anything functional and providing privacy was sufficient even if it wasn't pretty.
Then one day you see ... [ Read More ]

The chorus of Darius Rucker’s song For the First Time poured out of the speakers as I drove to work.
When was the last time you did something for the first time?
Yeah, let yourself go, follow that feeling
Maybe something new is what you're needing
Like a real life, let your hair down, feel ... [ Read More ]

It looked easy when I watched people do it on TV and YouTube, but I was still intimidated.
Seeing people demonstrate in short segments on DIY shows or online videos actually highlighted in my mind everything I didn't know about how to do the project.
Instead of just jumping in and trying it, ... [ Read More ]

“What the heck,” I thought as I looked at my work. “You can do better than that!”
Some background information…
My mom had designed and was making a quilt for my niece’s 5th birthday. This is a tradition she started with my son, Nicholas, who is her first grandchild.
There are now six ... [ Read More ]

While I was appliqueing, the cart kept flirting with me as I caught glimpses of it out of the corner of my eye.
“Hey, over here,” it teased, “I’m clean and shiny and the light reflects off me making me beautiful. You know you want to turn your head and stare .”
The cart was right. I did want ... [ Read More ]

It was not the type of project I intended to do for ANY month in the School Year Challenge. It didn’t fit in the framework of renewing, repurposing, or redoing furniture. Nor did it fit into the category of any sewing project I have been wanting to do.
In fact, the original thought as I ... [ Read More ]

Too much to do but not sure where to start? You thought you had a plan of action, but it seems like you still aren't getting anything done?
These are some of the feelings that have plagued me on and off during the School Year Challenge.
This personal nine-month challenge began in September and ... [ Read More ]

On Tuesday, my husband Douglas and I were walking Caramel in the park. I was talking excitedly about the different things I had been doing for the first two days of spring break.
(A little background...in most of my 20+ years of education very little would get done around the house during this ... [ Read More ]

"Remind me how I felt at this moment the next time I want to eat as much as I did today," I groaned to my husband as I curled up on the bed holding my stomach.
I remember the day I overindulged on too much food. It was delicious at the time, but I felt horrible at the end of the day.
The ... [ Read More ]

Hello, I’m Nicki!

Welcome to The Ruffled Purse! If you've been wanting to learn how to sew or already know how to sew but want to spend more time doing it, you're in the right place. Here you'll find education and inspiration for sewing projects for yourself, your home, and others. About me...